Mize, Ray

Ray Mize – (1985)

 

Ray Mize

Ray Mize always considered himself a ”late bloomer”. Lorain Hi did not field a baseball team while he was in high school, and so, he began his career with Mike Telatniks Elks team as a catcher. He moved steadily up the sandlot ranks and in the winter he played round ball with the Standard Cleaners in the City Class A League.

Like so many athletes he was called to service in 1943 with the U.S. Army Medical Corp. He served as a Surgical Technician with the 3rd Infantry and wound up playing baseball with Camp Cooks fine aggregation.

It was at Camp Cook that his manager switched Ray to shortstop and Ray found a home. Pleased with Ray’s strong arm and his RBI potential the manager suggested a tryout with the Chicago Cubs. On behalf of Ray, he wrote to Tony Lucadello of the Cubs and Ray was on his way in organized ball.

In 1946 he began with Radford of the Blue Ridge League and moved steadily up the ladder through Winston Salem to the Florida International League with the famed Miami Marlins. While with Miami, Ray toured Cuba and played with a young second baseman named Fidel Castro. Fidel did not make the team and went to bigger if not better things.

Recognizing Ray’s 280 average and his other potential the St. Louis Cardinals offered $5,000 for his contract. When the club would not sell him Ray decided he had had enough. He returned to Lorain and enrolled at Bowling Green. Later on, the Washington Senators offered a Texas League contract. At age 26, Ray felt it was best to begin a new life.

During this period Ray played with the Toledo City Champions Jim White Chevrolets and won the batting title with a 420 average.

Returning to Lorain Ray played semi-pro basketball with Gerry Gormley’s Amherst Rockets and enjoyed playing against the New York Knicks and Harlem Globetrotters. But baseball was still his best game and in 1957 he helped the National Tube nine win the National Amateur Baseball Federation Championship.